Things to avoid

Getting talked out of betting

Don't get talked out of making a bet when you've made your decision on who to bet on stick to it. It's easy to get swayed into changing your bet when someone you know proclaims with supreme confidence that the horse they have picked is going to win. There is nothing more annoying than changing your mind and seeing the horse you originally picked romp home by 10 lengths.

Chasing your losses

Do not whatever you do chase your losses. More often than not it makes a bad day worse.

Not getting your bet on in time

Make sure once you have made your decision on which horse to back that you place your bet in plenty of time. Many a winning bet has not been placed because you've been left standing in a queue at the betting window.

Not betting on bad favourites

Sometimes horses are backed down to ridiculously short odds based purely on the sheep factor. That is if everyone else is doing something it must be right. This is often the time you can bag some juicy winners. Sometimes the horse who is very heavily backed is by far the best, but not always. Never assume odds are an accurate indication of a horses chances of winning. If that were the case the favourite would always win.

Don't be swayed by superstition

Only base your betting choices on facts. Don't think that horses in stall four never win or that grey horses always tire in long races. Use facts not faith.

Don't assume experts know everything

When you watch coverage of races on the television its easy to be led by the experts opinions. However, just because someone gives their opinion with confidence does not necessarily mean they know more than you about the outcome of a race. Just because an ex-jockey has ridden 500 winners doesn't necessarily mean they know a thing about picking winners.